BY PAULEA BENOZA

Despite having left the show business many years ago, Michelle Madrigal remains relevant for being an inspiration to thousands of her followers on social media, particularly to fans who have witnessed her humble beginnings through the now-defunct show Star Circle Quest. Indeed, the 31-year-old has come a long way–from being an actor and a model, she now gets to live her life to the fullest as a fitness guru and a hands-on mother to her unica hija, Anika.

In an Instagram post she made yesterday, Michelle took on the Transformation Tuesday challenge but this time, looking back at her emotional and spiritual growth as a woman. Unbeknownst to many, she used to deal with a quarter-life crisis even with her career as a celebrity was going stable. “[The old me] was outgoing, full of energy [and] ambition but she was also prideful, arrogant, snob and thought she knew everything about life. She was full of insecurities and didn’t know self-love. She was in and out of toxic relationships because she wanted love to save her. She was lost,” wrote Michelle.

But after having gone “through hell and back” in life, the former star, who now resides in Texas with a family of her own, rose from the ashes wiser and stronger than ever before.

“I had to grow through a lot in my late 20s. I finally understood the saying ‘you get what you attract.’ I learned how to let go of things and cut toxic people who didn’t deserve to grow with me. I had to change to be the woman I wanted to be in order to be given the partner I deserved to have. I’ve learned to appreciate life [in] its simplest form. I am honoring the life, the opportunity and growth that’s ahead of me,” concluded Michelle.